Studies point to a dangerous trend toward problem gambling among 14- to 21-year-olds who face a dizzying array of enticing gambling options, all with big potential payoffs, writes Bill Webb & Ken Camp of the Baptist Standard.

For its part, the online gambling sector has addressed the issue making it more difficult for those under the age of 18 to gamble using their computers. A 60 Minutes report two years ago demonstrated how only one out of five Internet casinos allowed a minor to access.

Those joining the majority of online casinos must have a credit card to do so and be able to provide proof of residency including utility bills, phone bills and a driver's license. These are documents that minors are not likely to have.

Experts are alarmed about early-age gambling because they believe adolescents are more likely than adults to become problem gamblers-as much as three times more likely, the Baptist Standard points out.

One study estimates 2.9 million young people are gambling on cards on a weekly basis, yet the study does not conclude this activity took place online nor did it indicate minors were betting with real money.

The Prevalence of Problem Gambling Among U.S. Adolescents and Young Adults: Results From a National Survey"-released in late 2007 released some interesting findings. Researchers interviewed 2,274 randomly selected U.S. residents ages 14 to 21.

68 percent of the young people who responded said they had gambled in the past year. It should be noted that in High Schools throughout the US it is common for even future Senators to place $5 friendly bets amongst themselves on the Super Bowl.

11 percent acknowledged gambling at least twice a week. These are kids who are not parented properly and quite possibly those who roam the streets late at night selling drugs and playing loud music. The study does not delve into the status of participants family lives and whether these kids come from broken homes. The study does not ask of this 11 percent, how many are already sexually active, which would determine the type of moral upbringing and therefore all but eliminate "gambling" as a core issue.

Non-students-particularly those with regular income-were more likely to have gambled than students. This is likely due to students not having money in which to gamble with.

The games of choice for young gamblers identified in one survey might surprise parents.

A 2006 study of four Minnesota colleges suggested the top three most commonly played games among the surveyed students were slot machines at 70 percent, the lottery at 63 percent and Texas Hold 'Em poker at 46 percent.

---

Payton O'Brien, Gambling911.com Senior Editor